Date: 05-09-2025

Case Style:

United States of America v. Aristide Villatoro-Izaguirre

Case Number: 24-cr-00398

Judge: John F Heil, III

Court: United States District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma

Plaintiff's Attorney: United States District Attorney’s Office in Tulsa

Defendant's Attorney: Kent Morlan - 918-582-5544

Description: Tulsa, Oklahoma, criminal defense lawyer represented the Defendant charged with;

Unlawful Reentry of a Removed Alien

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Aristide Villatoro-Izaguirre from Honduras first came to the US illegally in 2012 seeking work and a better life.
In 2018, he was stopped for a traffic violation in Nashville and the COP found cocaine in the car, and he was charged with possession with intent to distribute based on the amount. He was found guilty and was sentenced to 12 years in prison with all but one year suspended. When he was released, he was deported.

Aristide could not make a decent living in Honduras and elected to re-enter the US without a visa, which is a felony. He was arrested in Tulsa in October 2024 and charged with illegal re-entry. He pleaded guilty. He was interviewed by Probation and Parole which recommended that he be sentenced to 10 months of imprisonment. The Department of Justice concurred.

Sentencing of Aristide was scheduled for May 9, 2025, but on May 7th, Judge John F. Heil sent an email to defense counsel saying that he was considering sentencing the Defendant above the sentencing guideline rang of 8 to 14 months.

At the sentencing hearing Defense counsel and Judge Heil engaged in an extensive debate about whether Judge Heil's political beliefs were improperly causing him to punish people charged with illegal re-entry to longer sentences than recommend by the sentencing guidelines.

While Judge Heil did not sentence Aristide in excess of the guidelines, he did sentence him to 14 months.

Outcome: Defendant was sentenced to 14 months incarceration and will then be deported to Honduras

Plaintiff's Experts:

Defendant's Experts:

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